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Friday, June 1, 2012

European Commissioner: European aquaculture the best but stagnant

In May 2012, Commissioner Maria Damanaki and Nicolaus Berlakovich,
Austrian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water
Management hosted a conference on the future of European
Aquaculture. They discussed how the European Commission, the Member States,
the European Parliament and the stakeholders can ensure the successful future of European aquaculture.

Firstly, the Commission intends to start a consultation process to identify the problems which prevent European aquaculture form flourishing.

For example, competition for space is a major challenge to the economic
development of freshwater fish farming or farming sites in coastal
areas. To tackle this, the Commission will look at
how to site aquaculture in water and on land, and also consider the
potential co-location with other economic activities. For example, some
Member States are researching the option to co-develop aquaculture with
wind farms or solar energy plants.

At present, many aquaculture farms are located in
or close to Natura 2000 areas which contribute to the maintenance
and preservation of aquatic biodiversity. The Commission is developing a set of guidelines to
illustrate the compatibility of aquaculture activities and the Natura
2000 nature conservation objectives.

Secondly, customers often have limited access to information about the fish they buy. The Commission will work towards highlighting quality
features properly. In addition, the proposed creation of an Advisory
Council for Aquaculture in our CFP Reform will provide a permanent
consultation forum for all interested parties and can contribute to this
perspective.

The Commission releases that EU countries have differing aquaculture ambitions so the European framework they suggest will be limited to
the main priorities and general targets.

On a more personal level, Ms Damanaki made some interesting remarks on the matter on her blog. She believes that European aquaculture is the best in the world but is stagnant. However, she is positive about the future, stating, "to revive EU aquaculture we need coordinated action by all levels of
authorities, EU, national and regional: let’s work together."

About the European Commission

The European Commission oversees and implements EU policies by:

proposing new laws to Parliament and the Council

managing the EU's budget and allocating funding

enforcing EU law (together with the Court of Justice)

representing the EU internationally, for example, by negotiating agreements between the EU and other countries.

There is one Commissioner for each of the 27 member states. Each Commissioner takes responsibility for one policy area.